Stained Glass Artist Bridget Brunner Wins Rasmussen Award
Local artist Bridget Brunner stands next to one of her stained-glass creations.
Photo courtesy of Bridget Brunner.
By Michelle McAfee
On the day of the first big fluffy snowfall of the year, stained glass artist Bridget Brunner glanced out the window of her small art studio and said with a cheerful tone, “It’s a lovely, snowy morning here in Thompson Pass.”
Her land is wooded with spruce and birch trees, except for a sunny hillside where her cabin and small art studio stand among the ferns and grass - and now snow. She installed a hot tub under a waterfall in a creek behind her cabin and has a sauna bathhouse. It is an idyllic haven for an artist who makes her living creating stained glass.
Bridget Brunner was given the Rasmussen Award this year for her stunning glasswork depicting life in Alaska. “I’m so happy about that! I found out in August or September and soon realized there was more to it than the money. The money is helpful. It will allow me to build a bigger studio. But I didn’t realize until I won the award, that being associated with the Rasmussen Foundation brings a lot of other benefits, like promotion, being part of the Foundation, having access to ongoing series for self-promotion, and business classes through the year.”
Stained glass art by Bridget Brunner. Photo courtesy of Bridget Brunner.
Bridget has already begun building a larger studio on her property on an existing foundation in a large, sunny open space. The groundwork is done, and she has all the materials to finish the structure. As soon as the snow lets her start again, framing will begin in the spring. By the end of next summer, the new studio should be finished.
All the glass Bridget uses in her art is purchased in person when she makes trips to Washington or Oregon, where sheets of colored glass are manufactured. The glass is then barged up to Alaska in giant crates, forklifted to shore at the port, then trucked to her studio in Thompson Pass. The sheets of glass are 4x8 in size and stored inside her studio on sturdy shelves where she can sort through varying colors during the creation of a piece. It takes a lot of space to store heavy glass sheets, so building a larger studio to allow her more workspace is important.
Bridget explained the steps she took to create a stained glass piece.
“It’s a slow medium to work in. First, I have to draw the pattern and design. You can’t always cut what you can draw, so learning how to draw a design you can cut is important.”
After she draws the pattern, she transfers it to the glass, cuts and grinds the glass, then uses a copper foil technique to edge it. Thin copper foil strips lace the pattern together with glass and are soldered. She then puts the finished glass design on a frame. It’s slow work.
Bridget said it becomes a meditative process. Different steps take full focus, and some of it is busywork, “I look forward to waking up and going out to the studio. I listen to podcasts and audiobooks and lose track of time and other things when I’m in there. It’s my retreat space.” She spends mornings in her house or yard, then heads to the studio midday and works on glass into the night. “I’m a night owl,” she said.
This Alaskan-inspired stained glass piece by Bridget Brunner depicts a packrafter navigating river rapids. Photo courtesy of Bridget Brunner.
Bridget’s designs are inspired by her trips skiing or getting out in the wilderness in Alaska. Her work is very detailed, capturing moods in skies, the motion of objects, and a sense of flow in river rapids, and she described how she does that. “With glass, you can’t just draw and cut out. You have to see how lines and swirls go together in a design. You have to think about how the lines are going to all flow together and look for places in the drawing where you can actually cut the glass.”
Bridget created two big windows for the Girdwood Fire Station that are 10-feet tall and 2-feet long. She has done larger public commissioned work, allowing more room in the design to add greater detail. Bridget is also working on big glass for the Bethel Hospital, with an extensive scene containing many more elements than a smaller piece can hold. Her framed art is on display in Girdwood at The Bake Shop, and she fulfills custom orders through her website.
“At some point, I will try to get into a couple more galleries and take a few designs to ski towns in the Lower 48. But for now, I like just focusing on Alaska. I ship all over the country.”
Bridget was born in Girdwood and had two entrepreneurial parents. Her father is a wildlife photographer, and her mother is amazing with crafts and color-combing, good at any art she picks up. Bridget tried pottery, jewelry, arts and crafts, and painting but was always intrigued by stained glass. She took a workshop in Washington and was hooked. Bridget has since done workshops online and in person, learning how to use stained glass to represent her Alaskan lifestyle. She is constantly reaching for new techniques and ways to incorporate the outdoors in her work.
Her love of the outdoors and Alaska is why she is an artist today, and she credits her parents with giving her a deep value of that lifestyle. Bridget said it’s a blessing to be able to stay home and work on things that give her joy. “I can go hiking if the weather is good, or work in the garden, or focus in the studio - it’s a blessing. You can make a living with art if you’re really passionate about something, and if you’re willing to be broke for a while and give up other luxuries.”
Bridget is now a successful stained-glass artist, making a living with her art. A Rasmussen Award winner and commissioned artist working full time in her small - soon to be large - studio tucked in the spruce trees may inspire other artists on a similar path. Pursuing a passion, learning new skills, and working hard can lead to “living the dream.”
Read about other Copper Basin creatives with these past CRR articles:
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